THE OFFICIAL RASPBERRY PI BEGINNER’S GUIDE

Setting up the software

Before you can begin using the Raspberry Pi in earnest, you’ll need to set up its software –
in particular its operating system, the software which controls what the Pi can do. NOOBS,
the New Out-Of-Box Software, is designed to make this as easy as possible, allowing you to
choose from several different operating systems and install them automatically. Better still,
you can do all this in little more than a few clicks of the mouse.
When the Pi is first switched on, or booted, with a fresh installation of NOOBS on its microSD
card, you’ll see a screen with the Raspberry Pi logo on it and a small progress window at the
upper-left. After a short pause, which can take up to a minute the first time you use the NOOBS
microSD card, you’ll see the screen shown in Figure 2-1.

3Figure 2-1:
The NOOBS menu
without any operating
systems installed

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 NO PICTURE?
If you can’t see the Raspberry Pi on your display, check you are
using the correct input. If your TV or monitor has more than one
HDMI input, switch through each in turn using the ‘Source’ or
‘Input’ button until you see the NOOBS menu.

This is the NOOBS menu, a system which lets you choose the operating system to run on
your Pi. Two operating systems are included with NOOBS as standard: Raspbian, a version of
the Debian Linux operating system tailored specifically for the Raspberry Pi; and LibreELEC,
a version of the Kodi Entertainment Centre software. If the Pi is connected to the network –
either through a wired connection or using the ‘Wifi networks (w)’ option from the top bar of
icons – you can also download and install other operating systems.
To begin installing an operating system, use the mouse to put a cross in the box to the left
of Raspbian Full: point the cursor at the white box and click once with the left mouse button.
When you’ve done so, you’ll see that the ‘Install (i)’ menu icon is no longer greyed-out; this lets
you know that your operating system is ready to install (Figure 2-2).

5Figure 2-2: Choosing an operating system to install through NOOBS

Click the ‘Install (i)’ icon once with the left mouse button and you’ll see a warning message
telling you that installing the operating system will overwrite any data currently stored on the
microSD card – not counting NOOBS itself, which stays intact. Click ‘Yes’ and the installation
process will begin (Figure 2-3).

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5Figure 2-3: Installing the Raspbian operating system

The installation process can take anything from 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the speed
of your microSD card. As the operating system is installed, progress is shown in a bar along
the bottom of the window, you’ll see a slide show highlighting some of its key features; you’ll
learn more about these, and the operating system itself, in Chapter 3, Using your Raspberry Pi.

WARNING!
It’s important that the installation isn’t interrupted as this has a
high likelihood of damaging the software, a process known as data
corruption. Do not remove the microSD card or unplug the power cable
while the operating system is being installed; if something does happen
to interrupt the installation, unplug the Pi from its power supply, then
hold down the SHIFT key on the keyboard as you connect the Raspberry
Pi back up to its power supply to bring the NOOBS menu back up. This
is known as recovery mode, and is a great way to restore a Pi whose
software has been corrupted to working order again. It also allows you
to enter the NOOBS menu after a successful installation, to reinstall the
operating system, or install one of the other operating systems.

When the installation has finished, a window will pop up with an ‘OK’ button; click this and
the Pi will restart into its freshly installed operating system. You’ll see a lot of text scrolling up
the screen (Figure 2-4, overleaf); these are known as the boot messages, and the first time
you boot into Raspbian it can take a minute or two as it adjusts itself to make the best use of
the free space on your microSD card. The next time you boot, things will go more quickly.

Chapter 2 Getting started with your Raspberry Pi 33

 5Figure 2-4: The Raspbian boot messages

Finally, you’ll briefly see a window with the Raspberry Pi logo on it before the Raspbian
desktop and setup wizard appears, as in Figure 2-5. Your operating system is now fully
installed and ready to be configured, which you’ll learn to do in Chapter 3, Using your
Raspberry Pi.

5Figure 2-5: The Raspbian desktop

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Chapter 2 Getting started with your Raspberry Pi 35

 Chapter 3

Using your
Raspberry Pi
Learn about the Raspbian operating system

T
he Raspberry Pi is able to run a wide range of software, including a number of
different operating systems – the core software that makes a computer run. The most
popular of these, and the official operating system of the Raspberry Pi Foundation,
is Raspbian. Based on Debian Linux, Raspbian is tailor-made for the Raspberry Pi and comes
with a range of extras pre-installed and ready to go.
If you’ve only ever used Microsoft Windows or Apple macOS, don’t worry: Raspbian is
based on the same windows, icons, menus, and pointer (WIMP) principles, and should quickly
feel familiar. The following chapter will get you started and introduce you to some of the
bundled software.

The Welcome Wizard

The first time you run Raspbian, you’ll see the Welcome Wizard (Figure 3-1). This helpful tool
will walk you through changing some settings in Raspbian, known as the configuration, to
match how and where you will be using the Pi.

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5Figure 3-1: The Welcome Wizard

CLOSING THE WIZARD

You can choose to close the Welcome Wizard by clicking the Cancel
button, but certain Raspberry Pi features – such as the wireless network –
won’t work until you answer at least the first set of questions.

Begin by clicking the Next button, then choose your country, language, and time zone on the
next screen by clicking on each drop-down box in turn and selecting your answer from the list
(Figure 3-2). When you’re finished, click Next.

5Figure 3-2: Selecting a language, among other options

Chapter 3 Using your Raspberry Pi 37

 The next screen will ask you to choose a password. Normally, the password for the ‘pi’
user – which is the standard user name for all Raspberry Pi computers running Raspbian – is
‘raspberry’, but having a password everybody knows isn’t very secure. Choose a new one –
making sure it’s one you will remember – and enter it in the boxes (Figure 3-3). You can click
on the tick next to ‘Hide Passwords’ to show the passwords you’ve written, which must be the
same in both boxes. When you’re happy, click Next.

5Figure 3-3: Setting a new password

The next screen will allow you to choose your WiFi network from a list (Figure 3-4). Scroll
through the list of networks with the mouse or keyboard, find your network’s name, click on
it, then click Next. Assuming that your wireless network is secure (it really should be), you’ll
be asked for its password, also known as its pre-shared key; this is normally written on a card
with the router or on the bottom of the router itself. Click Next to connect to the network. If you
don’t want to connect to a wireless network, just click Skip.

5Figure 3-4: Choosing a wireless network

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WIRELESS NETWORKING
Built-in wireless networking is only available on the Raspberry Pi 3
and Raspberry Pi Zero W families. If you want to use another model of
Raspberry Pi with a wireless network, you’ll need a USB WiFi adapter.

The next screen will allow you to check for and install updates for Raspbian and the other
software on the Raspberry Pi (Figure 3-5). Raspbian is regularly updated to fix bugs, add new
features, and improve performance. To install these updates, click Next; otherwise, click Skip.
Downloading the updates can take several minutes, so be patient. When the updates are
installed, a window saying ‘System is up to date’ will appear; click the OK button.

5Figure 3-5: Checking for updates

The final screen of the Welcome Wizard (Figure 3-6) has a simple task to do: certain
changes made will only take effect when you restart your Raspberry Pi, a process known as
rebooting. If prompted to do so, click the Reboot button and the Raspberry Pi will restart. This
time the Welcome Wizard won’t appear; its job is done, and your Pi is ready to use.

5Figure 3-6: Rebooting the Raspberry Pi

Chapter 3 Using your Raspberry Pi 39

 Navigating the desktop
The version of Raspbian installed on most Raspberry Pi boards is properly known as ‘Raspbian
with the Raspberry Pi Desktop,’ referring to its main graphical user interface (Figure 3-7).
The bulk of this desktop is taken up with a picture, known as the wallpaper (A in Figure 3-7),
on top of which the programs you run will appear. At the top of the desktop is a taskbar (B),
which allows you to actually load each of the programs; these are then indicated by tasks (C)
in the taskbar.

B
L C E F G H I J

K N O P
M D

5Figure 3-7: The Raspbian desktop

A Wallpaper G Volume Icon M Window Titlebar

B Taskbar H CPU Monitor N Minimise
C Task I Clock O Maximise
D System Tray J Media Eject P Close
E Bluetooth Icon K Launcher
F Network Icon L Menu Icon (or Raspberry Icon)

The right-hand side of the menu bar houses

the system tray (D). At the very far right is an eject
symbol (J); clicking on this will bring up a list of
any removable storage, such as USB memory
sticks, you have connected to the Pi and allow
you to safely eject and remove them. Next to
this is the clock (I); click on it to bring up a digital
calendar (Figure 3-8).

4Figure 3-8: The digital calendar

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